The Press: The Right to Be Unfair

One of the most significant First Amendment disputes since the Pentagon
papers case was argued last week before the Supreme Court. At issue is
the constitutionality of a long-ignored Florida law that requires
newspapers to give political candidates the right to reply to editorial
criticism. But the stakes are much higher than that. Rumbles of
interest in a federal "right-to-reply" law have already come from the
White House, the Justice Department and some members of Congress,
notably Senator John McClellan of Arkansas.